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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30048876">Fragile Shells</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Space_Jumping_Writer/pseuds/Space_Jumping_Writer'>Space_Jumping_Writer</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game), mcyt</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst with a Happy Ending, Oneshot, Songfic</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 02:34:08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,091</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30048876</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Space_Jumping_Writer/pseuds/Space_Jumping_Writer</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>To say that Ghostbur visited this area often would be a lie. He'd never been here, at least not that he remembered. Faint singing was always heard when he was here, but it was never him singing.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>None</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Fragile Shells</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Yhd19ByZDQ<br/>Or just look up Reinaeiry's Full Version of the song!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>To say that Ghostbur visited this area often would be a lie. He'd never been here, at least not that he remembered. Faint singing was always heard when he was here, but it was never him singing.<br/>Phil had been looking for his dead son for almost an hour before he heard the singing. A song all too familiar to him, and all too personal.<br/>"Leaves from the vine, falling so slow…"<br/>"Like fragile, tiny shells, drifting in the foam."<br/>Phil had never returned to the room, partially because he was afraid to. Afraid of what he'd see, afraid of what he'd done.<br/>"Little soldier boy, come marching home…"<br/>Wilbur, my son. My brave, stupid son.<br/>"Brave soldier boy, come marching home."<br/>The room was still a disaster, a dark stain coated the floor and one wall was missing from the explosion. The thing that caught Phil's attention was not these reminders of what had happened here, but his son. He had a guitar, and was playing the song.<br/>"Ash in the snow, falling so slow, like fragile, broken hearts, with no place to go."<br/>"Little soldier boy, taken from home." Phil smiled slightly, remembering that day.</p>
<p>~</p>
<p>"I'm gonna be president Phil! Hope you and Techno come visit L'manberg soon!" The letter had a photo of Wilbur, Tommy, Tubbo, and the rest of L'manberg. Phil smiled, proud of his sons' accomplishments.</p>
<p>~</p>
<p>"Forced to fight a war, that was not his own." The apparition continued, like it didn't hear Phil.<br/>"Little soldier boy, cold and alone…" The guilt in Phil's stomach twisted. If he'd have been there, things could have been better than they are. His sons would all be alive and under the same roof again. Now one was dead, the other in exile, and the third being hunted down for his 'crimes'.<br/>"Brave soldier boy," the ghost choked.<br/>"Never made it home." The spirit finally looked up, black tears staining his face.<br/>"Hey Phil."<br/>"Hey, Wil."<br/>"Long time no see, huh?"<br/>"I guess. Can I ask you something?"<br/>"Sure."<br/>"How do you remember that song? I thought you only remembered the happy stuff." The ghost shifted, black tears still falling.<br/>"That's Ghostbur's job, not mine."<br/>"But you're…"<br/>"Wilboo, my name is Wilboo. I have all of Alivebur's sad, angry, or repressed memories."<br/>Phil just stood there in the doorway. There were two ghosts of his son?<br/>"Why?"<br/>"When Wilbur died, he went to purgatory. There, They offered him a choice: Ascend or remain. He chose to remain, but he had to choose what memories to keep. When he refused to pick, They made a deal with him. He would be was divided into two spirits, one with good memories, one with bad. If the two halves connect willingly, Wilbur, truly Wilbur, will be here, albeit in ghost form."<br/>“Then why are you here?”<br/>“Ghostbur has tried to come here, but his inability to remember what overwhelms him makes him forget why he wanted to come here in the first place.”<br/>“If I were to bring him here, would that be okay?” Phil wanted his son back, all of him. Ghostbur was nice, but he wasn’t Wilbur.<br/>“NO! FUCK OFF!” Wilboo lashed out, striking at Phil with his guitar. “I-I… I can’t torment him with these awful memories. This is how I can help. You have your son back, the one you knew before this shit happened to me-him.”<br/>Phil stepped away from the flashing spirit, but kept eye contact.<br/>"He's not my son. Not all of him, anyways."<br/>"Whatever. I just. My entire existence is to hold all the bad, sad, or mad. He's so happy, so free. I can't shift my burden into him, not in good conscience."<br/>"Will, please listen. I miss my son, all of him. I just want my family back."<br/>"Phil? Are you in-" Ghostbur turned the corner, before stopping in the entrance. "Oh, hello! I'm Ghostbur! You are you?"<br/>"My name? I'm Wilboo, I guess…"<br/>"Were you and Phil singing? I thought I heard someone singing…"<br/>"We were."<br/>"Ghostbur, could you sit with me for a moment?" Ghostbur did as asked, and sat in front of Wilboo, who began to play again.<br/>"Leaves from the vine, changing so slow…"<br/>"Like empty, fallen souls. Looking for a home."<br/>"Little soldier boy, thought he could soar."<br/>"Brave soldier boy, fallen in the war."<br/>"My little, soldier boy, I need you home." The room began to fill with light, and through the tears Phil thought dawn was breaking.<br/>"Brave soldier boy, come marching home." The light faded, and instead of Ghostbur and Wilboo, only one spirit sat on the floor of the room.<br/>"Wilbur? Is that you?" The spirit turned around to face him. He looked like Ghostbur, but over the bright yellow jumper he normally wore was Wil's brown coat from his exile.<br/>"It's me Phil. I'm me again." No amount of expression could convey how it felt to have Wilbur back.<br/>"Where's Tommy?"<br/>"He's in exile right now, but he's fine."<br/>"He's in what?"<br/>"Exile, but Dream's keeping an eye in him so he'll be fine." The wide-eyed panic from Wilbur said otherwise. In a second, the spirit was gone.<br/>Wilbur knew exactly what Dream was doing. The memories of Ghostbur with Tommy in Logstedshire were enough proof. Sure enough, when Wilbur arrived, Dream was there.<br/>"Give me all your things."<br/>"You can't just demand things from me!"<br/>"Do it or I'll-." Wilbur made himself visible in that moment, and he knew Dream saw him. "Ghostbur? Why are you-"<br/>"Get the fuck out of here you green bastard."<br/>"Ghostbur?"<br/>"Tommy, get behind me."<br/>"You're not Ghostbur."<br/>"Think yourself to be clever for figuring that out Dream? Get lost."<br/>"Or, what, exactly? You're dead. How can you stop me?" As if on cue, Phil and Techno showed up moments later.<br/>"Wil, why the hell did you-" Dream had placed but was yet to detonate the tnt that would destroy Tommy's stuff. "What the-"<br/>"Dream, get lost before one of us dies something we'll regret." Dream seemed to get the message, took his tnt and left. Phil apologized up and down for leaving Tommy with Dream.<br/>"How did you know Wil?"<br/>"Dream has always tried to manipulate us. That's why I blew up L'manberg, to try and keep the power over an entire country out of his hands. In the end I played right into his hands anyway."<br/>"Oh…" but the past didn't matter now. Tommy was safe and Wilbur was whole again. That's all that mattered.</p>
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